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Pseudoscience Are Represented In The Film Prisoners Of Silence

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In the movie, ‘Prisoners of Silence’ (1993), profound examples of pseudoscience are represented. The presented findings look as if they are break-through studies, when the documentary is actually unscientific due to its own qualities to masking itself as empirically passing science. “Something has gone wrong in their developing brains.” Is an example of entertaining, but fallacious quotes meant to catch the attention of viewers. Disturbing and erroneous statements about people with a developmental disability such as, “they shun human contact”, “lacked expression”, “imaginative ability”, and “empathy” or “intelligent minds imprisoned in bad bodies” are overused and make up the majority of the video. These negative connotations the video …show more content…

Autism is described in a uniform way as opposed to being unique disorder for anyone diagnosed, hence the “Spectrum” in Autism Spectrum Disorder. According to studies, only “aproximately 40% of children with ASD do not talk (CDC, 2010)” (Hewitt. et al 2012). The documentary used personal anecdotes only to try to prove that facilitative communication was an advancement in autism studies. According to the CDC, it would not be an advancement for over half of the people studied. Accountable research studies also admit there is a lack of research in defining autism itself claiming, “There has been limited and conflicting evidence regarding the prevalence of adults diagnosed with ASD (Such information has been difficult to measure reliably because, (a) lack of access to support services often leaves adults with ASD underrepresented in the literature and underserved in their communities, and (b) many older adults currently served in the IDD system have a primary diagnosis of developmental disabilities (DD) and may not necessarily have an autism diagnosis even though they present with the symptoms. It is also likely that there is also a vast cohort of adults with ASD who are not receiving needed services. In addition, many individuals are deemed ineligible for IDD services because their IQ scores exceed the maximum allowable for ID diagnosis or due to failure to …show more content…

For example, the video showed and claimed their success by its use at only one elementary school, for children they thought to be retarded, not autistic. They evaded scrutiny of peer reviews by becoming popular in the news media. It was even admitted that there wasn’t any evidence the disabled people were using the machines and possible the facilitators or aids were doing it for

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What a facilitator can do to open the eyes of people that don’t have a disability is to talk about it, answer questions, make it ok to talk about rather than them thinking the wrong things about people with disabilities. While in the documentary a group of kids watched one of the U.S. Wheelchair Rugby games afterwards, they got to get the players autographs and talk with them. The kids were open to ask questions to the players. In one scene a little girl asks pro wheelchair rugby player, Bob Lujano how he lost his arms and he calmy said from a blood disease when he was little thinking he scared the kids he said to them that he’s alright and that’s all that matters in the end that he’s alive (Murderball, 2005, 48:42).

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A disability can make someone look at a "disabled" person in a specific way, even though they are just as capable as others of doing things. Some people don't realize the impact someone with a disability can have on the world because they are limited and criticized for their issues. People without disabilities can show what they have, and those with disabilities will never even get past the starting line because of people's biased views on disabilities. After listening to the Ted Talk by Keith Nolan, a private cadet, he established ethos, logos, and pathos through his educational speech on the deaf in the military. In the Ted Talk, Keith Nolan backs up his story with emotion, statistics, credible information, and real-life experience.

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This gives off that he, in fact, knows what he is talking about, though he doesn’t give examples. He relates to everyone by not just saying it could heal disabilities, but also protect the people who don’t. The claim ‘Our scientists can do more. But we’ve got to give them the chance.’ invests the audience and the readers to believe in the research that could happen, if only America would put money in the right places.

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The personal stories that Mairs discusses in “Disability”, regard her struggle with multiple sclerosis as well as the lack of representation she finds for disabled people in the media. For example, in the fifth paragraph, Mairs recalls asking a local advertiser why he didn’t include people with disabilities in his adverts, and he explained that he didn’t want people to think his products were only for disabled people. Mairs calls this an excuse and asks, “If you saw me pouring puppy biscuits, would you think these kibbles were only for the puppies of the cripples?” (Mairs). By including this question, Mairs is able to elaborate on her thoughts on the lack of representation in the media as well as the dismissive behavior that she receives from people in her everyday life.

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Leaving people who have a disability out of things and forgetting about them hurts their feelings. For instance, in Mairs’ essay she says “…you might feel as though you don’t exist, in any meaningful social sense, at all” (14). No one wants to feel that way, but people who have a disability go through it all the time. The media’s influence may convince people who have a disability to feel as if they’re an outsider since they have a “shameful” part of

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which proves that people only see a mentally disabled

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The book not only empowers autistic individuals to tell their own stories and challenge societal norms but also makes a strong case for embracing neurodiversity by advocating for more inclusive environments. Yergeau discusses how for individuals with autism, self-advocacy is not only essential but also a potent tool for promoting their needs, passions, and particular

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Autism Spectrum Disorder is a brain-based developmental disorder that involves multiple abnormal perceptual, cognitive, linguistic and social behaviors. With rates of Autism Spectrum Disorder rising, it is important that we improve our understanding of the causes of the disorder and become more culturally aware and sensitive to screening for the disorder in order to find effective interventions. Understanding of the current clinical picture, etiology and treatment of ASD will be discussed. Autism was a label coined in the early 20th century from the Greek word autos meaning “self” as it was used to refer to individuals who would “withdrawal from the fabric of social life into the self” (Hallahan, Kauffman, Pullen, 2015, pp.210). Symptoms

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Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that affects communication and behavior. Over the years the knowledge and language used in discussions of autism has evolved, reflecting changing attitudes and increasing understanding of the condition. Knowledge is power and the language we use to talk about autism has the power to shape public opinion, influence policy decisions, and affect the lives of individuals with autism and their families. In this rhetorical analysis essay I will examine a Ted Talk video “Autism what we know (and what we don’t know yet” by Wendy Chung. The information provided discusses the current state of our understanding of autism.

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